Wednesday, July 2, 2008

We Need Sensitivity, Not Stereotypes (Are You Listening, Don Imus?)



It's hard to believe there were good intentions behind Don Imus' insensitive question about Adam Jones (i.e., when he was told Jones had been arrested again, he asked, "What color is he?"). Al Sharpton said he'd keep an eye on Imus, Jones said he'd pray for him, and I decided to take the opportunity to comment on the problem of stereotyped thinking. [Click on the image for a larger version of this cartoon. The text reads: 'I was hurrying out the door, and I bumped into my neighbor, and she said, "What's the rush?" and I said, "I need to find a new place to board my rescued Premarin mare," and she asked why, and I said, "The woman I board with has been arrested," and she said, "What animal group did she belong to?" and I said, "None," and she said, "Those animal people keep getting arrested for domestic terrorism," and I said, "As a matter of fact, she was arrested for tax evasion," and she said, "So it's an antiwar thing?" and I said, "No, and you're starting to sound like Don Imus," and she said, "That poor guy. He can't say anything without being persecuted," and I said, "You really think it was OK to ask 'What color is he?' when he heard Adam Jones was arrested? He claims he was being sarcastic, but he’s not very sensitive" and she said, "Black people have to stop being so sensitive and just get over the racism thing," and I said, "Racism is still very real so it would be hard just to 'get over it,' and Don Imus is part of the problem," and she said, "He's always wearing a cowboy hat, so maybe he likes horses, too. Anyway, tell me about this animal rights antiwar woman that was arrested for domestic terrorism," and I pretended to get a phone call from my horse so my neighbor would stop interrogating me.']

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